Molony On Jennings, Slowey
Jim Molony’s column today at MLB.com has many good trade rumors that I haven’t seen elsewhere. Let’s discuss.
- Molony says at least a dozen scouts watched Jason Jennings toss a quality start last night. He needed it; I was beginning to think he wasn’t right. Still, the performance probably isn’t enough to cause some team to offer a package for Jennings superior to two draft picks.
- The Diamondbacks and Pirates had a scouting presence at the Astros-Dodgers game. Interesting players appearing in the contest included James Loney, Andre Ethier, Wilson Betemit, Mark Loretta, Morgan Ensberg, Jason Lane, Chad Qualls, Dan Wheeler, and Brad Lidge. You connect the dots, I have no idea.
- The Red Sox suggested sending Joel Pineiro to the A’s for Bobby Kielty in a swap of unwanteds; they were rebuffed.
- The Phillies and Braves watched Matt Morris allow four runs in six innings on Tuesday. They also may have been monitoring Steve Kline, who also pitched.
- A Devil Rays scout watched the Twins in Toronto on Tuesday. Ty Wigginton is thought to be a target for Minnesota. Perhaps the Rays’ scout fancied Scott Baker, who started for the Twins and went seven innings. Baker would be a stupendous return for Wiggy, in my opinion.
- The Phillies had their assistant GM scouting Kevin Slowey‘s start on Saturday. Molony suggests Minnesota might want Pat Burrell. That would involve a ridiculous amount of salary relief and a lack of Slowey. Slowey allowed one run in six innings in the game.
- UPDATE: Just realized that the above pair of bullets seem to have originated from La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. The scout watching the Twins on Tuesday was Lee Elia. Not sure why Molony didn’t cite this source, but I suppose he may have come across the info independently.
Graziano’s Latest: Livan, Wily Mo
Dan Graziano at the Newark Star-Ledger has really stepped up in recent days with a lot of insider trade talk. Let’s see what he has in store for us this morning.
- Apparently Josh Byrnes is calling around, actively shopping Livan Hernandez. According to Graziano, the Mets, Braves, and Mariners have expressed interest. To the contrary, Ken Rosenthal wrote last night that the Mets and Braves are not interested. Who to believe? Hopefully the Mariners do better than Livan if they make a move for a starter. To hear Nick Piecoro tell it, the Diamondbacks are more likely to just opt for the draft picks they’ll get if they let Hernandez leave via free agency.
- The Yankees are in a quandary when it comes to dealing Scott Proctor or Kyle Farnsworth. For Proctor, they want more than just a role player like Ty Wigginton. They want a reliever back, which begs the question – why not just keep Proctor? With Farnsy, the Yanks are reluctant to pay a big chunk of his $5.5 salary for ’08. They should toss in $2MM and see if that’s enough to get Wiggy.
- If the Red Sox can snag Bobby Kielty, they might turn around and trade Wily Mo Pena to the White Sox. Wily Mo in that ballpark with 600 plate appearances? 40 home runs. Might make Theo look bad. Dejan Kovacevic mentions that Epstein is "actively shopping" Pena, and seems to like the idea of the Bucs sending Salomon Torres to Boston for him.
- The Brewers, Phillies, and Dodgers are looking at Oakland lefty and impending free agent Joe Kennedy. Kennedy is only 28 and he has had National League success as a starter.
Tim Brown’s Latest: A’s, Yankees
Yahoo’s Tim Brown has a new post up, with some trade rumors we’ve heard before and some we haven’t.
- Clearly the A’s are sellers, and they’re offering up Mike Piazza, Joe Kennedy, and Bobby Kielty. Brown names the Twins as the club most interested in Piazza. He also feels the Yankees, Angels, Mariners, and Red Sox would be good fits. But where would Piazza play on the Red Sox?
- The Red Sox were apparently close to a deal for Kielty, a 31 year-old switch-hitting extra outfielder. He hasn’t played much center since ’02, so maybe the Sox have relaxed that requirement. Kielty was supposed to be moved in a three-team deal that would have sent Wily Mo Pena somewhere. The deal has stalled, but it’s really starting to look like Pena is on the move.
- The Yankees and Rangers are still discussing Mark Teixeira. My guess is that Brian Cashman just wants to see if this can be done without involving Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain. Failing that, the Yanks have Ty Wigginton and Shea Hillenbrand on their list. Wiggy would be a useful addition. Joe Maddon would still find a way not to play Jonny Gomes though.
Dan Johnson For Scott Proctor?
Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle believes that yesterday’s Jason Kendall trade could be the first in a series of forward-looking moves for the A’s. Billy Beane doesn’t say it outright, but he seems ready to play for next year. Simmons says rumors have swirled around Dan Johnson, Esteban Loaiza, and Mike Piazza.
Johnson has been linked to the Twins (DH) and Yankees (1B) previously. The idea is to clear some room at first base for top prospect Daric Barton. As a cheap league average 1B, Johnson has decent value. Simmons says a Johnson for Scott Proctor trade is "all the buzz." However, the teams have not talked in over a week. The 30 year-old Proctor has been worked pretty hard by Joe Torre, but has performed decently over the last two seasons. For a while during the offseason, the Yankees considered using him as a starter. The A’s could go through with that plan in ’08.
Piazza is said to be a candidate for the same teams as Johnson, plus maybe the Angels. He’d due back in about a week from a strained shoulder. He’ll only be able to DH.
Loaiza has yet to make his season debut due to neck, shoulder, and knee injuries. He recently threw a bullpen session and felt good, but won’t be big league ready until August. He’s owed $7MM in ’08; not sure if that salary would pass through waivers in August without a claim.
Cubs Acquire Jason Kendall
The Cubs made a deal tonight, sending catcher Rob Bowen and pitcher Jerry Blevins to the Athletics for Jason Kendall and cash. (ESPN keeps saying it was Sean Marshall going to Oakland, which is silly and not true).
Kendall had a respectable .758 OPS in June, but his bat has been anemic otherwise. But as signified by the questionable Michael Barrett trade, the Cubs are looking for defense at catcher. (Incidentally, Jim Hendry acquired Barrett from Beane in December of ’03 for Damian Miller). Kendall can certainly handle the pitching staff. And it wouldn’t be shocking to see him hit a little bit back in the NL; he rarely strikes out and knows how to draw a walk.
The Cubs didn’t give up much here. Bowen is a backup at best. Blevins, a southpaw reliever, will turn 24 in September. He’s been dominant in 53 innings between High A and Double A, but he’s not anyone’s idea of a top prospect. I like the move for the Cubs. As for Oakland, it gives them a chance to try Kurt Suzuki full-time for a few months as an audition for 2008.
A’s May Trade Piazza Instead of Johnson
If Mike Piazza can’t catch – and it looks like he can’t – the A’s pretty much have to unload Piazza or Dan Johnson once the former is ready to play.
Susan Slusser notes that possibly interested teams, such as the Twins, Yankees, and Angels, may prefer to go after Piazza. The cost would mainly be in salary, whereas the cheap and league average Johnson will require a decent player in return. So the question for Billy Beane is which does he want more? Relief from the remaining $3.88MM on Piazza’s contract or a solid prospect and an open spot for Daric Barton?
The A’s are not usually sellers at the trading deadline, so we don’t have much precedent. I like a Johnson move a little bit more.
Twins, Yankees Like Dan Johnson
There’s a lot of buzz going around that the A’s may become sellers soon, nine games back in their division and eight out in the Wild Card. Typical impending free agent parts like Mike Piazza and Shannon Stewart are candidates to be moved.
Another player Billy Beane could trade is first baseman Dan Johnson. Johnson is nowhere near free agency, but top prospect Daric Barton is knocking on the door. Having Johnson under contract through 2011 (if my math is correct) would make him especially valuable to a cost-conscious team like the Twins. Makes a lot more sense than Ty Wigginton.
Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press says the A’s are intent on trading Johnson, and speculates that he’d be a fine fit at DH. Buster Olney adds the Yankees and Red Sox to the mix. However, I think Buster may have accidentally misread the Walters article as far as the Boston part.
Johnson had an off year in 2006, but corrected double vision in the offseason and is hitting a solid .260/.369/.455 this year. Granted that’s just a hair above average for a 1B/DH, but it’s a lot better than what the Twins have been running out there. If Beane can pry away one of the Twins’ young pitchers – I keep bringing up Scott Baker – I imagine a deal can get done.
Rosenthal: Piazza Could Be Shopped
Ken Rosenthal has another column up tonight. The lead: the emergence of Jack Cust may cause the A’s to shop Mike Piazza. The problem is that Piazza may be limited to DH duties. Rosenthal names the Mariners, Twins, and Angels as teams lacking at the position, though all those clubs could be in the playoff chase with Oakland.
Billy Beane might find additional flexibility if Piazza is able to play first base. He played 64 games there in 2004 for the Mets. However, this might not sit well with Piazza. It was thought that his defensive struggles at first in ’04 carried over to his offensive performance at times. Moving Piazza to the NL probably wouldn’t work, even if he’s able to get behind the plate a couple of times each week. Since only a contender would consider acquiring Piazza, Beane is probably stuck with him.
Padres Acquire Milton Bradley
According to Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Padres have acquired Milton Bradley from the A’s for 26 year-old reliever Andrew Brown. Krasovic says Bradley would play left field for the Padres if healthy. The Padres got Brown from the Indians in the Josh Barfield deal. Oddly, the Indians got Brown from the Dodgers before that for Milton Bradley. Brown throws in the mid-90s, even touching 99 at times. He could make a useful reliever for Oakland.
Bradley and Michael Barrett look like a couple of low-risk, decent reward acquisitions for Kevin Towers. He’s really a smart GM. He’s definitely added some fire to the clubhouse with these trades. And don’t forget Paul DePodesta, who definitely had a hand in this.
Ken Rosenthal believes the Bradley acquisition takes the Padres off the market for big-name sluggers like Adam Dunn and Jermaine Dye. Dye might be untradeable anyway, because he’s not healthy right now. Bad timing on that for the White Sox.
There was quite an embroilment this week in the Oakland Tribune over the A’s DFA of Bradley. Columnist Dave Del Grande started the tiff by claiming that the A’s cut Bradley because he’s black. Billy Beane was not amused.
Forgotten Trade Candidates
Amidst all the Buehrle/Jacque rumors floating around this week, we’ve neglected to write about the many other players who could be traded in July. Let’s give a little press to three forgotten players who could be on the move.
Kyle Lohse, SP, CIN – I was pretty high on Lohse after April, thinking he was about to go all Bronson Arroyo on the NL. Good Bronson, that is. But Lohse followed up his first four starts by going 2-10 with a 6.27 ERA and 4.4 K/9. And that actually included a shutout against the Pirates. It’s hard to see how Lohse can help a pennant contender this year, but as a Boras client and impending free agent earning $4.2MM, Wayne Krivsky should dump him off somewhere. OK, so now that I think about it, he’s more of a DFA candidate than a trade candidate.
Joe Kennedy, SP, OAK – Billy Beane might be able to move the 28 year-old southpaw and free agent-to-be for something useful. Kennedy makes only $2.8MM and has an ERA under 4. That might not last with his microscopic strikeout rate though. With Esteban Loaiza on the shelf and Rich Harden questionable, Beane might have to hold off and take the draft picks for Kennedy. But given Kennedy’s strong groundball tendencies and the Phillies’ lousy starting pitching, maybe they could match up.
Jose Guillen, RF, SEA – Guillen is earning $4MM this year with a $9MM club option for ’08. The Mariners are just 2.5 games out of the wild card, and their rotation could use a boost. Guillen has posted a subpar line for a right fielder – .257/.330/.412. I’m not sure how much trade value he has, but the Mariners already have a superior player ready to go at Triple A in Adam Jones. Guillen is on pace for about 20 homers and 90 RBIs, so maybe some GM would bite on that. Teams looking for an outfielder with some pop could include the Royals, Twins, Mets, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, and Padres.